Price Of N.Z. Yarn Defended

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30828, 13 August 1965, Page 12

Price Of N.Z. Yarn Defended

(N.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 12.

New Zealand-made knitting yarn compared favourably in price and quality with wool retailed overseas, the president of the New Zealand Woollen Mills Association (Mr A. Holroyd) said today. He was renlying to criticism of the price and quality of locally-made handknitting yarns.

“The only proper and reasonable comparison is between articles of similar quality sold under similar conditions,” he said. “The comparison should therefore, be in respect of standard retail prices between our New Zealand yarn, and the retail prices in Britain Of varn from a British mill of first-class qualitv and reputation. We have, therefore, elected Paton and Baldwins, of world-wide standing.” PRICES COMPARED

Mr Holroyd compared the prices quoted by the Housewives’ Union for yarns imported by mail and the retail orices in Britain of the yarns of Paton and Baldwin (Coates/Patons). With the Paton and Baldwin prices in parenthesis, they were: double knit, lid and Is (2s): 3-ply. Is (2s 4d); 4-ply, Is (2s 4d): chunky. Is 3d (2s lid).

“We do not know the source of the Housewives’ Union’s woofs. What we do know is that in Britain, as in any

other large country, there are commercial firms, which call themselves mills, that buy tip special lots and sell them overseas by parcel post service—thus by-passing the services of retail business.

“We have yet to hear that a firm of the standing of Paton and Baldwin would, or could, sell in New Zealand on that price basis. “FINE SERVICE”

“We are sure that the only real price comparison is retail price, which, of course, carries the costs of the. services given to the retailer by such mills as Paton and Baldwin, and our New Zealand mills, and, through him, to the customer, together with the costs of the outstandingly fine service given to the customer by the shops retailing hand-knitting yarns in New Zealand.”

Mr Holroyd quoted the following expression of opinion by the Combined Knitting Wool Specialists’ Group.

“It has been brought to our notice that complaints have been made by various women’s organisations alleging high price and inferior quality of New Zealand manufactured hand-knitting wools. The members of our group, comprising specialist retailers of hand-knitting yarns in the major cities and towns of New Zealand, cannot agree with the tenor of the comments.

“First, with reference to the price at which parcels of knitting wool from certain overseas sources can be purchased by British postal note and brought into this country on a duty-free basis, we do not think it is reasonable to compare the advertised purchase price of these wools with the retail prices of New Zealand-spun hand-knitting wools. “A fairer basis of comparison would be to take the duty-paid retail prices in New Zealand of leading brands of

overseas knitting wool, which in past years have been imported by our members in some volume. These wools, if available today, would be only slightly lower in price than the New Zealand-pro-duced knitting yarns. GAP “INEVITABLE” “Furthermore, with the high standards of living prevailing in this country, it is inevitable that the costs of New Zealand manufacturers must be higher than those of overseas manufacturers in countries where very different economic conditions exist, and this statement, we feel, would apply to virtually any class of consumer goods manufactured in this country today. “Our members do have available to the public various types of lower-priced knitting wools, but as a group we find that our higher-priced knitting wools are our bestselling lines, these being clearly preferred by the public for reasons of quality and fashion appeal. “Second, with regard to the quality of New Zealandmanufactured kpitting yarn, it is the opinion of our members that the products of leading New Zealand mills compare favourably in terms of quality with the better overseas brands, “Those of our members who have seen shade cards and samples illustrating the types of knitting wools offered from various overseas sources on a mail-order basis agree that these wools appear to be well below the quality of the leading New Zealand brands. “Therefore, based on the experience of our members, who, through their stores, handle many thousands of lbs of New Zealand-spun knitting wool each year, we consider that the adverse criticism by certain organisations of the price and quality of New Zea-land-spun knitting wool is not based on a fair appraisal of all the relevant facts.”